You're the inspiration

Blog entries in Google Reader left to read: zero. Inspiration level: off the charts.

I'm caught up, finally, after falling behind in my reading of nearly two months of posts. I kept up with the time-sensitive stuff--mostly sports news and such--but lagged in reading the regular writings of those sharing thoughts, activities, and more from their daily lives. I feel ashamed about this since blogs kept by friends were among those that went unread during this time. In racking up dozens of unread items it was as though I was ignoring those people, even if they were none the wiser.

If ever there was a good excuse to stay on top of all the blog entries, it was the reminder of how these bloggers inspire me. (Many can be found in my sidebar links.) It may not seem like much--stray musings about small things, photos of one's corner of the world, knitting project details--but these glimpses into the interior and exterior lives of the writers are precious all the same. Finding commonalities with those near and far and discovering different ways of thinking about and seeing things is a privilege that these writers offer. How can that not be treasured or inspiring?

To share something of yourself with others is one of the greatest gifts available to everyone. Ideally the blogger delivers it on a regular basis. I've been feeling disconnected of late, so catching up with the blogs I read, with the fleeting thoughts and experiences therein that will be lost to history, was a nice way of reconnecting. I know that I go through times when I think what I write can't be of interest to anyone. If it isn't on occasion, that's OK. We're all permitted some clunkers. My hope is that you are able to find some tidbit of inspiration, familiarity, or novelty here from time to time like I get from those of you who maintain blogs.